Shoe last holding device and shoemaking machine having the same

ABSTRACT

A shoe last holding device for clamping a shoe last including two spaced-apart clamped portions includes a base seat unit, a driving unit, and a clamping unit. The driving unit includes a pushing member movable relative to the base seat unit. The clamping unit includes two spaced-apart clamping elements pivotally mounted to the base seat unit. Each clamping element includes a force transmission end abutting against the pushing member and a clamping end opposite to the force transmission end. The pushing member is disposed between and movable toward and away from the clamping elements to drive the clamping elements to convert between a releasing state and a clamping state where the clamping ends engage the clamped portions, respectively.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to Taiwanese Utility Model Patent Application No. 110201204, filed on Feb. 1, 2021.

FIELD

The disclosure relates to a shoe last holding device, more particularly to shoe making machine having the shoe last holding device.

BACKGROUND

A conventional shoe making machine operated manually includes a machine body, a mold disposed on the machine body, an elevating mechanism movable upwardly and downwardly, and a shoe last mounted co-movably to the elevating mechanism, disposed above the mold, and for mounting of a shoe upper to be processed. During processing the shoe upper, the shoe upper is mounted on the shoe last and a sole is disposed on the mold. The elevating mechanism is operated to move the shoe last downwardly until the shoe last presses against the mold so that the shoe upper can be connected with the shoe sole.

However, since the shoe last is fixed to the elevating mechanism and is disposed above the mold, it is troublesome for a user to hold the shoe upper to allow the shoe upper to be sleeved onto the shoe last, which is quite inconvenient to operate and time consuming, thereby resulting in a low operational efficiency. Additionally, since it is inconvenient to detach the shoe last, the shoe upper may not be fully checked to determine whether the shoe upper is skew. Consequently, the shoe upper may not be precisely aligned with the sole during pressing, which may cause poor quality of the finished product combining the shoe upper and the sole.

SUMMARY

Therefore, an object of the disclosure is to provide a shoe last holding device for shoe making capable of improving efficiency and quality of the conventional shoe making machine.

According to an aspect of the disclosure, a shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine adapted to be mounted on a machine body unit and to clamp a shoe last is provided. The shoe last includes two spaced-apart clamped portions to be held by the shoe last holding device. The shoe last holding device includes a base seat unit, a driving unit, and a clamping unit. The base seat unit is mounted to the machine body unit. The driving unit is mounted to the base seat unit and includes a pushing member movable relative to the base seat unit along a front-rear direction. The clamping unit includes two clamping elements that are spaced apart from each other along a left-right direction transverse to the front-rear direction and that are pivotally mounted to the base seat unit. Each of the clamping elements includes a force transmission end abutting against the pushing member and a clamping end opposite to the force transmission end. The pushing member of the driving unit is disposed between and movable toward and away from the clamping elements along the front-rear direction to drive the clamping elements to convert between a releasing state and a clamping state. When the pushing member is in the releasing state, the force transmission ends of the clamping elements are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction by a first distance so that the clamping ends of the clamping elements are spaced apart from the clamped portions of the shoe last. When the pushing member is in the clamping state, where the force transmission ends of the clamping elements are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction by a second distance that is greater than the first distance so that the clamping ends of the clamping elements clamp the shoe last therebetween such that the clamping ends engage the clamped portions, respectively.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a shoemaking machine adapted to process a shoe upper mounted on a shoe last is provided. The shoe last includes two spaced-apart clamped portions. The shoemaking machine includes a machine body unit and a shoe last holding device. The machine body unit includes a shaping mold and an upper seat disposed above the shaping mold and movable along an up-down direction. The shoe last holding device is adapted to hold the shoe last, is mounted co-movably to the upper seat, and includes a base seat unit, a driving unit and a clamping unit. The base seat unit is mounted to the upper seat. The driving unit is mounted to the base seat unit and includes a pushing member movable relative to the base seat unit along a front-rear direction. The clamping unit includes two clamping elements that are spaced apart from each other along a left-right direction transverse to the front-rear direction and that are pivotally mounted to the base seat unit. Each of the clamping elements includes a force transmission end abutting against the pushing member and a clamping end opposite to the force transmission end. The pushing member of the driving unit is disposed between and movable toward and away from the clamping elements along the front-rear direction to drive the clamping elements to convert between a releasing state and a clamping state. When the pushing member is in the releasing state, the force transmission ends of the clamping elements are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction by a first distance so that the clamping ends of the clamping elements are spaced apart from the clamped portions of the shoe last. When the pushing member is in the clamping state, where the force transmission ends of the clamping elements are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction by a second distance that is greater than the first distance so that the clamping ends of the clamping elements clamp the shoe last therebetween such that the clamping ends engage the clamped portions, respectively.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a shoe making machine according to an embodiment of the present disclosure assembled with a shoe last on which a shoe upper is mounted;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a shoe last holding device of the embodiment holding the shoe last;

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of the shoe last holding device of the embodiment holding the shoe last;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the shoe last holding device of the embodiment and the shoe last;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line V-V in FIG. 3, illustrating the shoe last holding device in a clamping state;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line VI-VI in FIG. 3, illustrating the shoe last holding device in the clamping state;

FIG. 7 is similar to FIG. 6, but illustrating the shoe last holding device in a releasing state; and

FIG. 8 is similar to FIG. 5, but illustrating the shoe last holding device in a releasing state.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before the disclosure is described in greater detail, it should be noted that where considered appropriate, directional terms may be used in the specification and claims to describe portions of the present disclosure (e.g., left, right, front, rear, top, bottom, etc.). These directional definitions are intended to merely assist in describing and claiming the disclosure and are not intended to limit the disclosure in any way.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, an embodiment of a shoe making machine according to the present disclosure adapted to process a shoe upper (not shown) mounted on a shoe last 5 is shown. The shoe last 5 includes a last body 51, a clamped seat 52 disposed on a top of the last body 51 and including two spaced-apart clamped portions 521 (only one is visible) that are configured as slender grooves. The shoe making machine includes a machine body unit 4 and a shoe last holding device 100. The machine body unit 4 includes a supporting frame 41, a shaping mold 42 disposed on said supporting frame 41, and an upper seat 43 disposed on said supporting frame 41 and above the shaping mold 42 and movable along an up-down direction (Z) for mounting of the shoe last holding device 100. To assemble the shoe upper and a sole (not shown) together, the sole applied with adhesive thereon is first brought to be disposed on the shaping mold 42. Then, the shoe upper is brought to mounted on the shoe last 5 and the shoe last 5 is brought to be mounted on the shoe last holding device 100. Subsequently, the upper seat 43 is controlled to move the shoe last 5 downwardly until the shoe last 5 is pressed against the shaping mold 42. In this way, the shoe upper is connected with the sole.

The shoe last holding device 100 is adapted to hold the shoe last 5, is mounted co-movably to the upper seat 43, and includes a base seat unit 1, a driving unit 2, and a clamping unit 3.

The base seat unit 1 is mounted to the upper seat 43 and includes a base wall 11 and a shaft seat 12. The base wall 11 is for mounting of the driving unit 2, is fastened to the upper seat 43 by a plurality of nuts and bolts, and is formed with a receiving slot 111 open rearwardly along a front rear direction (X) transverse to the up-down direction (Z). The shaft seat 12 extends downwardly from the base wall 11 along the up-down direction (Z).

Referring to FIGS. 2 to 4, the shaft seat 12 includes a fixing portion 121 mounted to a lower side of the base wall 11 and a shaft end portion 122 opposite to the fixing portion 121 along the up-down direction (Z). The fixing portion 121 of the shaft seat 12 is fastened to the base wall 11 by four bolts. The shaft end portion 122 is formed with two cavities 123 that are spaced apart from each other and that extend along a left-right direction (Y) transverse to the up-down direction (Z) and the front-rear direction (X), and two pivot holes 124 that are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction (Y) and that extend along the front-rear direction (X).

The driving unit 2 is mounted to the base seat unit 1 and includes a cylinder 21 disposed in the receiving slot 111 and including two valve holes 211, a pushing member 23 movable relative to the base seat unit 1 along a front-rear direction (X), and a piston rod 22 mounted reciprocatingly to the cylinder 21, movable along the front-rear direction (X), and having one end that is mounted fixedly to the pushing member 23 to drive the pushing member 23 to move along the front-rear direction (X).

Referring to FIGS. 4 to 6, the pushing member 23 is driven by the piston rod 22 to move relative to the base wall 11 along the front-rear direction (X). The pushing member 23 includes two pushing portions 231 spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction (Y), and a notch 232 formed between the pushing portions 231 and provided for the shaft seat 12 to extend therethrough. In this embodiment, each of the pushing portions 231 of the pushing member 23 has a first pushing surface 233 and a second pushing surface 234 that extends rearwardly and outwardly from a rear end of the first pushing surface 233.

The fixing portion 121 of the shaft seat 12 extends through the notch 232 and has a width along the left-right direction (Y) approximately equal to a dimension of the notch 232 along the left-right direction (Y), such that the pushing portions 231 of the pushing member 23 are in sliding contact with the fixing portion 121. In this embodiment, the driving unit 2 employs a pneumatic cylinder as a power source that compresses air flowing into the cylinder 21 through the valve holes 211 so as to drive the piston rod 22 to move along the front-rear direction (X). The structure of the driving unit 2 is relatively simple and the driving unit 2 is thus advantageous in control. In other embodiments, the driving unit 2 may employ other power source such as a hydraulic cylinder, a combination of a threaded rod and a step motor or a servo motor, and the present disclosure is not limited herein.

The clamping unit 3 includes two clamping elements 31 which are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction (Y), which correspond respectively in position to the pushing portions 231 of the pushing member 23, and which are pivotally mounted to the shaft seat 12 of the base seat unit 1, two biasing members 32 each of which is disposed between a respective one of the clamping elements 31 and the shaft seat 12, and two pivot pins 33 each of which connects a respective one of the clamping elements 31 to the shaft end portion 122. Specifically, each of the pivot holes 124 formed in the shaft end portion 122 permits a respective one of the pivot pins 33 to extend through to allow a corresponding one of the clamping elements 31 to pivot relative to the shaft end portion 122 of the base seat unit 1.

Each of the clamping elements 31 includes a main plate 34 and two pivot jointing lugs 35 which extend from the main plate 34 and through which the pivot pins 33 extend respectively. The main plate 34 of each of the clamping elements 31 includes a force transmission end 341 abutting against the pushing member 23 and a clamping end 342 opposite to the force transmission end 341. The main plate 34 is formed with a blind hole 343 between the force transmission end 341 and the clamping end 342, and aligned with a respective one of the cavities 123 formed in the shaft end portion 122 along the left-right direction (Y). The force transmission end 341 of each of the clamping elements 31 cooperate with the fixing portion 121 to clamp a respective one of the pushing portions 231 therebetween. Each of the pushing portions 231 extends between the fixing portion 121 of the shaft seat 12 and the respective one of the clamping elements 31 and abuts against a corresponding one of the force transmission ends 341 and the fixing portion 121. Each of the force transmission end 341 has a first inclined surface 344 facing toward the driving unit 2 and extending rearwardly and outwardly, and a second inclined surface 345 extending forwardly and inwardly from a front end of the first inclined surface 344. For each of the force transmission ends 341, the first inclined surface 344 is parallel to the first pushing surface 233, and the second inclined surface 345 is parallel to the second pushing surface 234. In this embodiment, each of the clamping ends 342 includes a rib 346 having a shape of a rounded bar and being complementary in shape with the clamped portions 521 of the shoe last 5.

Each of the biasing members 32 is disposed in a respective one of the cavities 123 and a corresponding one of the blind holes 343 and biases a respective one of the clamping ends 342 away from the shaft end portion 122 of the shaft seat 12. Since the biasing members 32 are located below the pivot pins 33, the clamping elements 31 are biased by the biasing members 32 to the releasing state. In this embodiment, the biasing members 32 are compression springs. In other embodiments, the biasing members 32 may be a spring plate and the present disclosure is not limited to the specific example of the basing members described herein.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, by virtue of the pushing member 23 of the driving unit 2 that is movable toward and away from the clamping elements 31 along the front-rear direction (X), the clamping elements 31 is converted between a releasing state (FIGS. 7 and 8) and a clamping state (FIGS. 5 and 6).

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, when the clamping elements 31 are in the releasing state, the first pushing surfaces 233 of the pushing portions 231 abut respectively against the first inclined surfaces 344 of the clamping elements 31, and the force transmission ends 341 of the clamping elements 31 are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction (Y) by a first distance (D1) so that the clamping ends 342 of the clamping elements 31 are spaced apart from the clamped portions 521 of the shoe last 5.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, when the clamping elements 31 are in the clamping state, the second pushing surface 234 of the pushing portions 231 abut respectively against the second inclined surfaces 345 of the clamping elements 31, and the force transmission ends 341 of the clamping elements 31 are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction (Y) by a second distance (D2) that is greater than the first distance (D1) so that the clamping ends 342 of the clamping elements 31 clamp the shoe last 5 therebetween such that the clamping ends 342 engage the clamped portions 521, respectively. Thus, the ribs 346 of the clamping ends 342 stably clamp the shoe last 5 therebetween.

When a user is intended to detach the shoe last 5 from the shoe last holding device 100, i.e., to convert the clamping elements 31 to the releasing state, the driving unit 2 is operated such that the piston rod 22 moves toward the cylinder 21 and drives the pushing member 23 to move rearwardly along the front-rear direction (X) so as to allow the clamping ends 342 to be biased away from each other by the biasing members 32, and thereby releasing the clamped portions 521 of the shoe last 5 from the clamping ends 342. In other embodiments, the biasing members 32 can be omitted and the clamping elements 31 are manually operated to move the clamping ends 342 away from each other so as to detach the shoe last 5 from the shoe last holding device 100.

It should be stated that when the clamping elements 31 are in the releasing state, the pushing member 23 may not in contact with the clamping elements 31. The configuration of the clamping elements 31 and the pushing member 23 may be modified as long as the pushing member 23 is able to be moved to a position between the clamping elements 31 to allow the clamping elements 31 to clamp the shoe last 5 when the clamping elements 31 are in the clamping state.

To mount the shoe last 5 on which a shoe upper is sleeved to the shoe last holding device 100, the clamping seat 52 is first held by hand and is moved to a position between the clamping elements 31, and the clamped portions 521 are brought to align respectively with the clamping ends 342. Subsequently, the driving unit 2 is operated to move the piston rod 22 forwardly so that the pushing member 23 is moved forwardly and abuts against the clamping elements 31 to convert the clamping elements 31 to the clamping state and thus hold the shoe last 5 therebetween.

The advantages of the embodiment of the present disclosure are as follows:

First, when the clamping elements 31 are in the releasing state, the user may detach the shoe last 5 from the clamping elements 31 to sleeve the shoe upper on the shoe last 5 and thus it is relatively convenient to adjust the position of the shoe upper on the shoe last 5.

Second, by virtue of the biasing members 32 that bias the clamping ends 342 away from each other, the clamping elements 31 can be automatically converted to the releasing state and is relatively convenient to use.

Third, the fixing portion 121 of the shaft seat has a width along the left-right direction (Y) approximately equal to a dimension of the notch 232, such that no gap is formed between the fixing portion 121 and each of the pushing portions 231. Thus, the pushing portions 231 would not deform toward each other due to reaction force transmitted from the force transmission ends 341.

Fourth, by virtue of the configuration of the second inclined surface 345 parallel to the second pushing surface 234, a contact area and a frictional force among the pushing portions 231 and the force transmission ends 341 are increased when the clamping elements 31 are in the clamping state. Thus, the pushing portions 231 stably and respectively abut against the force transmission ends 341 and it is relatively difficult for the force transmission ends 341 to move relative to the pushing portions 231.

In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects, and that one or more features or specific details from one embodiment may be practiced together with one or more features or specific details from another embodiment, where appropriate, in the practice of the disclosure.

While the disclosure has been described in connection with what is considered the exemplary embodiment, it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine adapted to be mounted on a machine body unit and to clamp a shoe last, the shoe last including two spaced-apart clamped portions to be held by the shoe last holding device, said shoe last holding device comprising: a base seat unit mounted to the machine body unit; a driving unit mounted to said base seat unit and including a pushing member movable relative to said base seat unit along a front-rear direction; and a clamping unit including two clamping elements that are spaced apart from each other along a left-right direction transverse to the front-rear direction and that are pivotally mounted to said base seat unit, each of said clamping elements including a force transmission end abutting against said pushing member and a clamping end opposite to said force transmission end, said pushing member of said driving unit being disposed between and movable toward and away from said clamping elements along the front-rear direction to drive said clamping elements to convert between a releasing state, where said force transmission ends of said clamping elements are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction by a first distance so that said clamping ends of said clamping elements are spaced apart from the clamped portions of the shoe last, and a clamping state, where said force transmission ends of said clamping elements are spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction by a second distance that is greater than the first distance so that said clamping ends of said clamping elements clamp the shoe last therebetween such that said clamping ends engage the clamped portions, respectively.
 2. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein said base seat unit includes a base wall for mounting of said driving unit, and a shaft seat extending downwardly from said base wall along an up-down direction transverse to the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and permitting said clamping elements to pivotally connected thereto, said clamping unit further including two biasing members each of which is mounted between a respective one of said clamping elements and said shaft seat, and biases a respective one of said clamping ends away from said shaft seat.
 3. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 2, wherein said shaft seat includes a fixing portion mounted to said base wall and a shaft end portion opposite to said fixing portion along the up-down direction, said shaft end portion being formed with two cavities that are spaced apart from each other and that extend along the left-right direction, said clamping elements respectively including two blind holes aligned with said cavities, respectively, each of said biasing members being disposed in a respective one of said cavities and a corresponding one of said blind holes.
 4. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 3, wherein each of said clamping elements further includes a main plate having said force transmission end, said clamping end, and a respective one of said blind holes, two pivot jointing lugs extending from said main portion, and spaced apart from each other along the front-rear direction, and two pivot pins extending respectively through said pivot jointing lugs, said shaft end portion of said shaft seat being formed with two pivot holes which correspond in position respectively to said clamping elements, each of which extends along the front-rear direction, and each of which permits a respective one of said pivot pins to extend through to allow a corresponding one of said clamping elements to pivot relative to said base seat unit.
 5. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 3, wherein said pushing member includes two pushing portions spaced apart from each other along the left-right direction and a notch formed between said pushing portions and provided for said shaft seat to extend therethrough, each of said pushing portions extending between the said shaft seat and a respective one of said clamping elements and abutting against a corresponding one of said force transmission ends.
 6. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 5, wherein said fixing portion of said shaft seat extends through said notch, and said pushing portions being in sliding contact with said fixing portion.
 7. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 5, wherein said force transmission end of each of said clamping elements has a first inclined surface facing toward said driving unit and extending rearwardly and outwardly, each of said pushing portions of said pushing member having a first pushing surface parallel to said first inclined surface, said first pushing surfaces of said pushing portions abutting respectively against said first inclined surfaces of said clamping elements when said clamping elements are in the releasing state.
 8. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 7, wherein said force transmission end of each of said clamping elements further has a second inclined surface extending forwardly and inwardly from a front end of said first inclined surface, each of said pushing portions of said pushing member further having a second pushing surface that extends rearwardly and outwardly from a rear end of a respective one of said first pushing surfaces and that is parallel to said second inclined surface, said second pushing surface of said pushing portions abutting respectively against said second inclined surfaces of said clamping elements when said clamping elements are in the clamping state.
 9. The shoe last holding device for a shoemaking machine as claimed in claim 8, wherein said base wall is formed with a receiving slot open rearwardly along the front-rear direction, said driving unit including a cylinder disposed in said receiving slot and a piston rod mounted reciprocatingly to said cylinder, movable along the front-rear direction, and having one end that is mounted fixedly to said pushing member to drive said pushing member to move along the front-rear direction. 